Nucleus and Nation is one of those rare books that have an extraordinary range in respect of the Indian scientific temperament over the last century and written with distinctive verve and informed empathy.
Anderson, a professor at the School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, had come to India in 1962 as a teenager to study in Shantiniketan. He recalls the “rare conjunction of eight planets called astograha ” and the local responses the event elicited. While the astrologers warned of dire consequences, the modern Indian mind warned against “unscientific thinking,” and the seed was planted for Anderson’s abiding interest in “science and culture in India.”
Almost half-a-century later has emerged this volume, providing a magisterial overview of the trajectory Indian science — from its colonial phase to the post-1947 Nehruvian vision. While the book is not exclusively about nuclear weapons or nuclear power, they are a recurrent theme, and understandably so, given their symbolic value in the global techno-strategic environment.
Nimbly linking many disciplines from scientific postulates to cultural studies to colonial theory and gender sensibility, the author presents a persuasive and innovative trapeze that connects nation and nucleus with power and networks. Semantic exactitude and elegance inform Anderson’s writing and serve to illuminate a distant past and also to interpret the events for the curious reader.
The interrogation of the construct of the post-colonial nation with a British impress in the Indian context; the gradual emergence of a ‘nucleus’ of scientists — some of whom worked on the physics of the atomic nucleus — and its correlation with the international milieu of an expanding scientific network against a complex political backdrop make the larger canvas of the Anderson story.
The central characters are three of India’s most eminent scientists, Meghnad Saha (1893-1956), Shanti Bhatnagar (1894-1955) and Homi Bhabha (1909- 66). It is by drawing upon their personal lives the author has sought to substantiate the thesis of the book, which is that “there would not have been a sustained atomic energy programme without a coevolving relationship between science and politics.”
The fact that the penurious scientist/creative mind needs the patronage of the state and that scientific inquiry — except in a few disciplines — is intertwined with the proximity to power are as good as historically established facts. In the Indian case, the indigenous atomic quest was further compounded by the prevailing global strategic power orientation, by which the country was sought to be kept out of the exclusive nuclear club.
Tracing the evolution of the nascent Indian scientific nucleus from the 1920’s, in 25 lucid chapters, Anderson recreates the lives of the three protagonists: Saha, the son of a poor shop-keeper in the then East Bengal; Bhatnagar, who hailed from a village in Uttar Pradesh; and Bhabha, the scion of a wealthy Parsi family from Bombay.
The politics of the emerging scientific institutions in colonial India and the intense personality clashes between the titans of the day come alive, thanks to Anderson’s observant eye and painstaking effort in interviewing people and delving into archival material across the Indian scientific landscape.
The persona of Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi, who served as Prime Ministers for extended periods, permeates the book. In retrospect, one could say that independent India has been fortunate in having enjoyed enormous official and political support from them for its indigenous scientific endeavour.
The book moves from the emergence of the ‘nation’ post-1947 to the creation of a scientific state, detailing the role played by the Union Cabinet, the DRDO’s contribution, et al . The abiding challenge of providing affordable electricity through the nuclear option receives considerable attention. The nuclear test of May 1998 and the debates it generated — both in India and abroad — are referred to in passing.
One perception Anderson seeks to remove is that Indira Gandhi was not very cerebral and hence unable to grasp the complexities of modern science and technology. As he says, despite her lack of a university degree and the absence of a conceptual fascination for science (which Nehru had), “she had an important influence on scientists and technologists ... [and] helped to define big strategic projects.”
The biggest to date is the Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project, India’s quest for nuclear propulsion which Indira Gandhi supported against many odds. This project has come to fruition with the launch of the nuclear submarine, the Arihant. It is part of the eco-system that Anderson maps in such rich detail, although the book has nothing on it.
The astograha of 1962 was indeed a rare concatenation, and one of the elements was young Anderson’s presence in India. This volume and the companion that is set to follow will throw the much-needed light on a less studied aspect of India’s scientific voyage. This is a book that merits the widest possible dissemination.
NUCLEUS AND NATION-Scientists, international networks, and power in India: Robert S. Anderson; Supernova Publishers and Distributors (P) Ltds., 12, ARD Complex, R.K. Puram Sector 13, New Delhi-110066. Price: Rs.795.
